Training Calendar

3.FSI posts details of training courses
on its website; all are encouraged to regularly visit this link, see which ones
they are interested in, plan, participate, earn training credit, accumulate
over a period of time the requisite number of training credits and seek from
FSI Successful Training Completion Certificate.

4.As may be seen, the training courses are broadly
divided into three categories: A, for all RG officers, viz,
US or equivalent and above; B, for all non-RG officials, viz., SO or equivalent
and below; and, m, for MTS/ Chauffeurs or equivalent. The default listing that
appears once you click on details
of training courses is for group B (SO or equivalent and below) training
that are confirmed (c); the filter given on top allows you to draw lists as per
your requirements (for US and above course, please change b to a etc).

Training credits

5.Total number of working days of training that one
needs to complete to obtain Certificate
of Successful Completion of Training from FSI is given below:

Dir/DS/US/PPS and equivalent ranks from other cadres, both from
HQ and from Missions / Posts

20 days

SO/PS/Astt/PA/.../LDC
and equivalent ranks from other cadres, both from HQ and from Missions /
Posts

30 days

MTS /
Chauffeurs and equivalent ranks
from other cadres, both from HQ and from Missions / Posts

5 days

6.To facilitate timely accumulation of training credits,
training is organized in a flexible capsule format wherein for a particular
training capsule, one would need to be at FSI/over
webinar only for two working days.

7.In a
calendar year, upto 100 days of training are
organized, in two repeat cycles, allowing each trainee enough opportunities to
complete the requisite mandatory training.

8.Training
content is relayed in hybrid manner (on site as also online) to reach those
physically present at FSI as also those joining through webinar.

Pass score

9.The
training days is translated into training score where each important aspect of
the training is given weightage. Thus, attendance, retention,
Memos, performance in tests, additional tasks if any (lecture / presentations,
thesis, committee work, event Orgn/Participation, when relevant) are all
factored in. The details including relative weightage, overall pass
score etc are explained here.

10.There is brief 30
minute test for all (barring for MTS/Chauffeurs/Security Assistants) both
on-site and online after the training capsule in the following week (to allow
for some time for absorption of training received); time is fixed, viz., from 0900-0930 Hrs IST.

11.The answer sheets
are assessed by experts.

12.Test can be given
either at FSI or at respective offices as the questions would seek descriptive
answers that could also be sent by email to fsitests@mea.gov.inby the deadline (0930 Hrs on the day
of the test).The answers are to be also
uploaded online (meafsi.in/tests)

1.Attendance (If found absent or absent-minded any time
during the training session, the concerned person would be marked absent. Those
found sleeping or absent without prior authorization would attract negative
attendance. Web attendees would need to respond immediately when their name is
called and for this they must have a headphone or else they would be marked
absent).

2.Active participation

1.This would mean that trainee comes to the training
session prepared to convert the lectures into panel discussions.

5.The paper has to be uploaded within one day after
lecture as any delay would hold memos that other trainees may wish to add. If
the SPW does not write the paper in time, anyone else can upload the paper
mentioning as the first line that the paper being uploaded as SPW did not
upload thus far.

6.If a particular paper is not uploaded even after
passage of one clear day, any trainee can volunteer to upload the paper on
first come first serve basis. Once a paper is uploaded there should be no
repeat paper upload (thus trainees should first verify if there is already a
session paper on a particular lecture before adding their own).

1.Writing a more lucid, better session paper if the
earlier one/s (whether written by the main writer or by subsequent memo
writers) are not of good lucid character. In writing style economist style guide
should be taken as reference. (While uploading a full session paper, as part of
memo, reason should clearly be mentioned upfront as first line of the memo)

2.covering hitherto uncovered details,

3.adding further information that they may learn from their
additional studies beyond the classroom lecture.

4.Ensuring that any memo added should improve the
discussion whether by way of lucidity or content and should thus not be a
routine repeat.

5.Well written memos generally earn 2 points but for
exceptionally well written ones, one may even get more points (e.g. 5).

6.Needless to mention, poorly written memos would attract
negative markings.

8.Each trainee would have to earn good marks in the
Tests that are conducted at the end of the training capsule.One can appear in the
test whether after attending the training session (at FSI or over webinar) or studyingon their own.
(Thus, if one wanted, one could get the entire training
score through one’s own studies and appearing in weekly tests, and not having
to sit through classes. Alternatively, one could avoid altogether the tests and
score the relevant score by simply but actively attending the classes).
All active work adds to score; as much the performance in tests as active
attendance. The test in itself has only one question, compulsory for all,
selected from among the subjects covered during the training capsule of the previous
week. Effective time available, during the half an hour test from 0900-0930
Hrs, to answer the question is limited, around 20 minutes max. Answers are to
be only type written and thus all need to start practising their typing skills.
[For online guidance for learning 5 finger typing, may
see Tool1 and Tool 2 and for practice may see here.]

16.One can attend
all the relevant training sessions as found appropriate (the only division is
that there the training courses are divided into two categories:
Non-representational Grade Courses; and Representational Grade courses and earn
attendance credit in the relevant category). One can give tests as many times
as one wishes and accumulate test credits. Other tasks
are similarly flexible and explained during every inaugural briefing (first day
of the start of a course from 0900-0930 Hrs IST).

18.Session papers /
reviews / memos are assessed. Profile ID wise session paper listing can be
pulled out and the scores read using the link
here. Similarly, memo writer profile ID wise listing of memos along with
scores can be seen here.

1.You include only those training components that you
actually attended / participated in.

2.In the score column, please include as announced on
the website, or what you think is the score you think you must get; the former
relevant when it is expressly evaluated by FSI (e.g. weekly tests /
presentations / lectures et); the latter is relevant when such an explicit
evaluation may not be available. To distinguish the latter from the former,
highlight the latter entries in yellow colour. FSI would scrutinize all the
entries including the yellow highlighted parts for corrections, if any.

21.Needless to
mention deliberate wrong claims would not attract mere reversal but penalty.

Weekly / random test / evaluation

22.The guidelines for conducting / evaluation of
weekly / random tests, particularly by the OT/RG Division, detailed here, would be of
interest to all.

23.Onsite training
elements like State specialization / village immersion, applicable for RG
officers, could be undertaken by the officer either at convenience (e.g. while
on Home Leave / Transitor any other visit
to India) or when coming to FSI as part of training (e.g. during CR’s
conference, MCTP Phase 2, MCTP Phase 3 etc). This training involves a week-long
STADVI visit (State, District, Village immersion including study tours to
industrial, touristic, historical sites of importance in the assigned state)
and ends inter alia in de-briefing / presentation / STADVI visit report / State
brief update.

4.Number of memos added on others session papers (these
memos have to be substantive value addition by way of addition / subtraction /
clarification / elucidation and not repeat of what is already included either
in session paper or in earlier memos. Thus one has to read all the existing
material on the subject before deciding if there is any new point that needs to
be added. New points may emerge both as those missed in session paper or from
literature research / one’s own experience / knowledge.)

5.Marks obtained in the tests

6.Further work undertaken if any (note: may not be
applicable to all) e.g.:

1.Presentations / lectures

2.Thesis

3.Committee work

4.Event organization / participation

3.As to thesis work, if applicable, choose a subject,
with the consent of FSI, that the trainee would study in detail and make
presentation (over webinar / at FSI). Presentation would be for around 10
minutes followed by 20 minutes QnA; audience would be
FSI faculty, expert faculty and other fellow trainees. The subject has to be
outside the existing expertise of the officer. Officer would have to give three
options for the FSI to choose from.

4.Seek scheduling of the presentation.

5.Make effective presentation during the scheduled slot
(at FSI or over webinar). Substandard work would attract negative marking (to
ensure that this route of high credit is not routinely adopted in non-serious
manner)

Videoexplanation on self-monitoring

28.The link http://www.meafsi2.in/sa/rg_ots2014/SelfAssessment.htm
gives detailed guidelines followed for mid-term assessment of the IFS OTs 2014 batch; many of the concepts and links detailed
there (particularly on session paper / memo/ random / weekly test evaulations) would be found useful by all.

Query: How does one know the training program relevant to his rank/cadre?

Answer:Please study the training calendar detailed above. Further, on
the first day when any training course begins, from 0900-0930 Hrs there is
briefing on these general points. One may join either
at FSI or over webinar to receive individual specific counselling.

Answer: It is rare in this day for anybody to be posted abroad and not have
these basic things. But, if that is the case and your office is satisfied, they
can issue office laptop, internet dongle for the period of your training.

Query: It is difficult to focus on training while working in office.

Answer: While attending training, your focus has to be undivided. Passive or
distracted participation earns you no attendance credit.

Query: There was temporary disruption in the
internet connectivity.

Answer: Please make do this loss through your
self-studies and use of recorded versions / session papers / memos written by
other trainees on the session.

Query: Where I can locate recorded versions?

Answer: FSI is making arrangements for online streaming of the recorded audio
versions; and, the link would be included here in due course. Till then, all
must attend over webinar and cover for any gaps via session papers.

-All the
participants, subsequent to their registration (that includes the web
participants as well), are divided into eight teams and a team leader is
nominated by us, from amongst the participants.

-The participants
occupy their seats in the auditorium, team wise.

-For the
convenience of the web participants, the composition of the team and the name
of the team leader is conveyed over webinar as the
attendance of the web attendees is being marked (between 9.00 and 9.30 hrs).

-All members of
the team are to write individual session papers on the session they are
covering (e.g. Team 1 covers session no 1) at the above mentioned EMail ID, with a copy to their team leader.

-The subject of the
EMail will invariably be prefixed by the words
"Profile ID - xxxx - Session Paper on.......". (Profile ID of each participant is system generated
at the time of their registration.)

-The team leader
will carve out a "Team Session Paper" and upload it against the
appropriate session in the meafsi website.

-The other
participants are free to write memos on this session paper.

-The participants
are to write "Five Learning Points" at the end of each training
capsule which covers each session, but was being submitted handwritten,
hither-to-fore.

-The participants
will now mail these "Five Learning Points" at the same EMail ID (nrgsp@mea.gov.in). This mail will not be marked
to the Team Leader. The subject of the EMail will
invariably be prefixed by the words "Profile ID - xxxx
- Five Learning Points on.......".